Patient, Public & Media Information

Clinical Practice Guidelines

AAOS Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines are based on a systematic literature review of published studies. Multidisciplinary guideline development groups construct Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines to serve as an educational tool based on an assessment of the current published scientific and clinical information and accepted approaches to treatment. AAOS clinical practice guidelines meet all of the
IOM standards for developing a trustworthy clinical practice guidelines. The process involves many steps to limit the risk of bias, incorporating a large number of experts on the topic under study via clinician work groups and peer review and public commentary stages. For more information on the development process for AAOS clinical practice guidelines, please view the
Clinical Practice Guideline Methodology.

Click Here to view the guideline peer review and public comment responses.

Companion Consensus Statements

In the event that no relevant evidence is found for a particular PICO question, clinician guideline work groups are afforded the opportunity to create consensus companion statements (i.e. statements based on expert opinion). Consensus companion statements are published separate from clinical practice guidelines, to ensure separation between evidence-based recommendations and consensus-based statements.

The AAOS Department of Research and Scientific Affairs has created a chart detailing the tools and resources currently available to facilitate research and quality activities within the Specialty Societies.